


Sickingly sweet

by vcdbtch2



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Cuddling & Snuggling, Kissing, M/M, Merthur - Freeform, Sick Merlin (Merlin), Sickfic, Soft Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-18
Updated: 2020-10-18
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:55:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,822
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27079183
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vcdbtch2/pseuds/vcdbtch2
Summary: When Merlin is sick, Arthur has to take care of him in a world he isn’t completely familiar with yet.
Relationships: Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 171





	Sickingly sweet

The shrill beep of an alarm going off is the second thing that registers in his mind, the first being the absence of the warm heat that should be curled up to his side. Arthur still hasn't quite gotten used to some things of the modern world, the alarm being one of them. Merlin understood this, hence why the alarm clock was on his side of the bed so Arthur wouldn't have to stress about trying to work out how to turn it off.

Arthur huffed at the piercing sound but stayed still, knowing Merlin would wake up soon and turn the damn thing off. But for some reason, today this wasn't the case. Merlin didn't seem to hear the alarm, either that or he was too lazy to turn it off. Usually Arthur would think the latter since Merlin was always a lazy servant back in Camelot and didn't seem to have changed a whole lot in the Modern world, but as lazy as he was, Merlin was always the first to wake between the two.

When it became apparent Merlin wasn't going to get up any time soon, Arthur rolled onto his side and gently kicked Merlin's shin. He groaned when Merlin didn't stir and conceded defeat, rolling on top of him to reach the alarm. After hitting each button a few times, the deafening sound stopped and all was quiet.

He looked over at Merlin who was still huddled up in the blankets, the very tips of his black hair peeking out.

"Merlin" He mumbled sleepily, putting a hand on Merlin's back. All he got in response is a small groan as Merlin shifted to get away from him.

Arthur frowned and made an attempt to pull the covers back but Merlin let out another soft groan and pulled them back over his head, curling even further in on himself.

Arthur's starting to worry now, usually Merlin would be already up before the alarm went off and Arthur would find him curled up on the couch with a book in his hand and their cat at his feet. On the rarer occasions when Merlin was still in bed, he would be snuggled up to Arthur's warmth and they would lie together, their limbs tangled together and their bodies pressed as close as possible.

"Merls, what's wrong?" Arthur tried again, this time successfully pulling the blanket down. Merlin made another weak attempt to pull the blanket back up but Arthur stopped him with a gentle hand on his cheek, pulling his face towards him.

The sight that was revealed to him was a sickly pale Merlin with blotchy cheeks, his dark hair sticking to his sweaty forehead. Arthur frowned again and put the back of his hand to Merlin's forehead and just as he suspected, he had a fever.

Arthur wasn't sure what to do, having never looked after sick people before. Back in Camelot he had to help injured Knights and occasionally help Gaius tend to sick patients when needed but things were different now.

For starters, he knew he couldn't just send one of the Guards or Servants to fetch Gaius. From what he could gather, the Modern era no longer had Physicians, instead relying on 'Doctors' and 'Hospitals' to tend to sick people. He didn't know exactly where he wound find a Doctor and sure as hell didn't know how to get to a hospital, so he figured he would just have to rely on instincts to care for Merlin.

He sighed and shuffled under the covers, pulling Merlin against him. Merlin just whimpered softly at the jostle of his head, too tired to do anything but snuggle closer to Arthur's warmth. Arthur's hand instinctively went to Merlin's hair, knowing how much he liked having his hair played with.

They had learnt a lot more about each other when Arthur came back, not having the pressure of the kingdom and chores on their shoulders. Merlin learnt that Arthur was a big softie when it came to Merlin and loved to be cuddled and kissed and Arthur in return learnt that Merlin liked his hair being played with, his Mother having frequently done it to him when he was a boy.

Playing with Merlin's hair seemed to work as he went limp in Arthur's arms, burying his face into his neck and breathing in the comforting scent of his King. Arthur's heart swelled three times the size in his chest at the feeling of Merlin's warmth against his chest and just knowing they could finally do this.

Their feelings were kept well under wraps with each other, Merlin believing he wasn't ever going to be good enough for Arthur and Arthur foolishly denying any feelings he had towards Merlin by saying he liked women. When Arthur came back after several thousand years, it was like a switch had been flipped and they both knew they couldn't deny what they had felt for each other any longer.

"What hurts?" Arthur asked, moving Merlin's damp hair aside to press a soft kiss to his forehead. He didn't want Merlin to have to use his voice if his throat was sure but he didn't know how to help if he couldn't be sure exactly what was wrong.

"Head and Throat" Merlin croaked out, whimpering at the sudden jolt of pain in his temples and the scratchy feeling of his throat.

"Want me to make you some tea?" Arthur asked again, continuing to comb his fingers through Merlin's hair in hopes it would sooth his headache.

Merlin simply nodded against his chest but made no move to let Arthur up, if anything he curled into his chest further. Arthur let out a soft chuckle and gently untangled their bodies, pressing soft kisses to Merlin's cheek in apology before walking to the kitchen.

Luckily for him, Merlin had taught him how to use the basic appliances in the house, so he knew how to use the kettle to make tea. He reached into the pantry and pulled out a teabag, boiling the water and getting the milk out of the thing Merlin called the 'refrigerator'.

When the water was sufficiently boiled, Arthur poured it into a mug, along with the milk and the teabag. He dipped the teabag in and out a few times, making sure to get as much out of it as he could. He knew he should be making green tea as it was good for sore throats but Merlin had more than once voiced his hatred for the liquid and Arthur figured the the warmth would work just as well.

With the tea in hand, Arthur made his way back to the bedroom, briefly stopping to pet their cat who was curled up on the couch. Merlin had barely moved the whole time he was gone, seeming to only have the strength to pull the blanket back over himself.

Arthur set the mug down on the beside table and crawled back under the covers, gently coaxing Merlin to sit up against the headboard. Merlin did so with a few soft whimpers and groans and when he was situated comfortably, Arthur handed him the mug which he took with shaky hands. Arthur wrapped his fingers around the mug atop of Merlin's, knowing Merlin too weak to hold the mug.

"Better?" Arthur asked once Merlin had drunk a good amount, carefully putting the mug back on the beside table and pulling Merlin to lie down with him again. He felt Merlin nod against his chest, snuggling closer to Arthur's warmth like he had done many times before.

"Try and get some sleep, love" Arthur murmured, settling down in the bed while trying not to jostle Merlin around too much.

"Hurts" Merlin sniffled. Arthur's heart tugged painfully at the realisation that Merlin was in pain and all he could do to help was make him tea and play with his hair.

Back in Camelot when Merlin had been injured, Arthur had the knowledge that a trained physician like Gaius was looking after him, but things were different now.

Arthur had the basic knowledge on how to clean and look after a battle wound, he even knew how to reverse the effects of poison, yet he had no idea how to cure the flu.

"I know it does Merls, i know. I'll do everything i can to make you better, i promise" Arthur kissed the top of Merlin's head, bringing one hand up to his hair and the other to rub his arm, hoping Merlin could sleep through most of his illness.

He felt Merlin nod against his chest, followed by a shaky sigh and soon his breaths were coming out in soft puffs against Arthur's neck. Arthur smiled fondly, wondering how different things could have been.

Arthur could have stayed with Gwen, they could have had their own children and grow old together. He loved Gwen dearly, he would die for her, but she wasn't the one he thought about at night, she wasn't the one who gave him butterflies like a lovesick teenager.

He also could have ended up with one of the Princesses his Father tried to set him up with, could have spent the rest of his life with a wife he didn't love and children who's only purpose is for the kingdom.

Things ended up much better than that.

Instead, Arthur died and spent thousands and thousands of years under water, only to rise into a completely different world. He and Merlin found each other like they always did, they got used to being with each other again and once they had both gotten over the initial shock, they confessed their love.

Now, Arthur lived with Merlin and his cat in a 2 bedroom apartment in the middle of London, Arthur got a job as a History teacher at a local school and Merlin worked as a Nurse. During the day, Arthur went to school and taught children about medieval kingdoms and at night, he would come home to a freshly baked meal with his boyfriend waiting for him.

Life was pretty darn great, in his opinion.

**

Arthur must have fallen asleep because when he woke up, he was still lying on his back with Merlin's head on his chest, though judging by the speed of his breathing, he was awake.

"Do you feel any better?" Arthur asked, sleepily trying to rub his eyes.

"A little" Merlin responded. "My head still hurts but my throat doesn't hurt as bad anymore"

Arthur was quite proud of himself for managing to lessen Merlin's pain, despite only being in the modern world for 3 months and not knowing how most things worked.

"Thats great" Arthur smiled as Merlin began drawing small shapes on his stomach.

"I'm kinda hungry" Merlin said, looking up at Arthur with an amused glint in his eyes. Arthur chuckled, shaking his head at his boyfriends antics.

"Of course you are. Lets go get you something to eat then"

With a small sigh, Merlin slowly sat up and let Arthur slide out from under him. The second his feet touched the carpet he became light headed and he swore the room was spinning. Arthur was at his side in an instant, grabbing his shoulders with strong hands as his concerned eyes bored into Merlin's own.

"Do you need to sit?" Arthur asked, his brows furrowed in concern.

Merlin shook his head, wincing at the sudden movement and put a hand to his head. "No i'm fine, just got a little dizzy for a second"

Arthur wasnt so sure about Merlin being up on his feet but he figured having food on his stomach would help with the headache and the nausea.

He kept his arm around Merlin's waist, walking at a slow pace to the kitchen. When they arrived, he carefully sat Merlin down at the kitchen table and went to the fridge.

"What do you feel like?" Arthur asked.

"Nothing too heavy, maybe some soup or something" Merlin replied.

Arthur nodded and pulled out a leftover container of soup, cracking the lid open and putting it in the microwave. While that was heating up, he retrieved the mug from the bedroom and proceeded to make another cup of tea.

When the soup was ready, Arthur grabbed a bowl from the drawer under the oven and poured in the soup. He then grabbed the freshly made tea and walked over to Merlin who was still sitting where Arthur had left him, watching the former King of Camelot make tea with a fond smile.

"Here you go" Arthur said as he placed the mug and bowl on the table, leaning down to press a kiss to Merlin's forehead to check his temperature.

"Thank you, sire" Merlin teased with a smirk as he brought the mug to his lips. " I had no idea you could cook"

"It's just lucky you didn't ask for toast" Arthur winced. Merlin chuckled at the memory of walking in on Arthur trying to stick a fork in the toaster to retrieve his bread. Needless to say, Merlin pulled him away and gave him a 20 minute lecture on electric shocks.

Arthur sat down beside Merlin, running soothing circles over his back as Merlin sipped his soup. Though his throat was still hurting, he seemed to be able to swallow a lot better now and Arthur was thanking the gods.

"Do you feel any better?" Arthur asked for the second time, putting the back of his hand on Merlin's head again.

"Arthur i'm fine. Its just the flu, i've had it before" Merlin rolled his eyes, but his lips tugged into a fond smile. If he was honest, he liked being looked after, it made him feel warm and fuzzy inside.

"Sorry" Arthur looked down and Merlin swore he could see a blush on his cheeks. "It's just, you mean a lot to me and i hate to see you sick"

The confession came a surprise to Merlin. He knew Arthur loved him, he could see it in the fond smiles and the glint in his eye, but it was still shocking to hear. Arthur never talked about his feelings back in Camelot - he had his Father to thank for that -, so hearing him say something like that made Merlin want to cry.

"I love you too, Arthur" Merlin smiled widely and kissed Arthur's hand.

The words were unspoken between the two, but they both knew each other felt the love.

Arthur looked at him with such love and admiration before standing up and pulling Merlin in for a long, slow kiss. In the back of his mind, Merlin was worrying about Arthur getting sick, but then a soft tongue slid between his lips and all his thoughts drifted away.

"I love you " Arthur said when they pulled apart, his breath coming out in hot puffs against Merlin's swollen lips.

"Of course you do, i'm amazing" Merlin made a show of tilting his head high and throwing his arms up in the air which made them both start giggling like teenagers.

Their laughing was soon interrupted by Merlin letting out a wet cough, and Arthur was suddenly reminded that Merlin was sick and should be resting.

"Cmon, up you get" Arthur said, coming to stand behind Merlin and pulling him up.

"I don't wanna go to bed" Merlin groaned. " Cant we at least watch some TV or something"

Arthur sighed in agreement and helped Merlin towards the couch, tightening his hold every time he stumbled. When they reached the couch, Arthur sat down first and let Merlin lie down next to him. He reached for the remote and switched the TV on, flicking through channels until he found something that seemed interesting.

"I hate being sick" Merlin suddenly said after a few moments of silence.

"I know" Arthur responded, moving his hand to Merlin's hair again. He himself hating being sick, especially back when an entire Kingdom relied on him to be a good King, he couldn't do that when he was stuck in bed with the common cold.

He continued to run his hand through Merlin's hair, gently loosening all the knots and scratching Merlin's scalp with his nails. Merlin made content noises against his chest and Arthur could feel his body starting to slump against his and his breathing started to even out.

When Arthur was sure Merlin was in a deepsleep, he shifted until he was lying down on the couch against Merlin's back with his arms wrapped tightly around his waist.

He felt so content in this moment, lying on the couch with his lover after spending the day taking care of said lover, it was the only place he ever wanted to be. He loved Merlin with his entire heart and once he plucked up the courage, the ring hiding in his underwear drawer will be a statement of that.


End file.
